2001 SW 31st Avenue Hallandale, FL 33009 www.mitchellane.com John Bankston Copyright © 2019 by Mitchell Lane Publishers. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher. Printed and bound in the United States of America.
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Designer: Ed Morgan Editor: Sharon F. Doorasamy
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Bankston, John, 1974- author. Title: Portland Timbers / by John Bankston. Description: Hallandale, FL : Mitchell Lane Publishers, 2019. | Series: Major League Soccer | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2018003131| ISBN 9781680202625 (library bound) | ISBN 9781680202632 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Portland Timbers (Soccer team)—History—Juvenile literature. Classification: LCC GV943.6.P58 B36 2018 | DDC 796.334/640979549—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018003131
PHOTO CREDITS: Design Elements, freepik.com, Cover Photo: Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images, p.3 freepik.com, p.5 freepik.com, p.7 Brian Bahr/Getty Images, p. 8 public doman, p. 11 freepik.com, pp. 12-13 Steve Dykes/Getty Images, p. 14 Steve Dykes/Getty Images, p. 15 freepik.com, p. 17 Steve Dykes/Getty Images, p. 18 freepik.com, p. 21 Rich Lam/Getty Images, p. 22 Steve Dykes/Getty Images, p. 23 Steve Dykes/Getty Images, p. 25 Steve Dykes/Getty Images, p. 26 Scott Halleran/Getty Images, Contents Chapter One “Soccer City, USA” ...... 4
Chapter Two Playing at Home: The Timbers Army...... 10
Chapter Three Playing like a Champion...... 16
Chapter Four The Timbers Best...... 20
Chapter Five The Timbers Perfect Communicating...... 24
What You Should Know...... 28 Quick Stats...... 28 Timeline...... 29 Glossary...... 30 Further Reading...... 31 On the Internet...... 31 Index...... 32 About the Author...... 32
Words in bold throughout can be found in the Glossary. C “Soccer City, HAPTER ONE USA”
ajor League Soccer (MLS) was coming to Oregon. In MWashington State, soccer fans watched the Seattle Sounders. In northern California, they cheered on the San Jose Earthquakes. Oregon lay between them. It didn’t have a MLS team. The state is part of the Pacific Northwest. This region covers the northwest of the United States and Canada. It has both thick green forests and high snowcapped mountains. The Cascade Mountain Range cuts across Oregon. West of the Cascades are cities such as Eugene, Salem, and Portland. Eugene is known for its college. Salem is Oregon’s capital. Portland is the state’s largest city. It is home to Nike and many other businesses. Portland is also very rainy. Yet people who live there bike and hike all year. Many also watch and play soccer. The sport has been around for a long time in Oregon. The coastal CHA town of Astoria had the first organized team in 1890. The “Portlands” PTER ONE soccer team began the next year. In 1913, varsity soccer began at the University of Oregon. Throughout the 1900s, soccer teams of all levels played across the state. In 2009, Portland hoped to have their very own Major League Soccer team. Like baseball, football, and basketball, soccer has a major league. In the United States and Canada, major leagues attract some of the best athletes. They are also the highest paid.
5 Chapter One
Today there are 22 MLS teams. Nineteen are in the United States. Three are in Canada. They compete in two divisions, the Eastern and Western. The clubs play 17 games away. They play 17 at home. When the league began, there were only 10 teams. MLS was created because of the World Cup. It is soccer’s most important tournament. Thirty-two teams compete. Each team qualifies by region. Held every four years, the World Cup is played in a different country every time. The host country attracts thousands of soccer fans. They come to cheer their favorite teams. The United States wanted to host the 1994 World’s Cup. To be a host, the United States had to have a top level professional league. This is why Major League Soccer was created. MLS teams began playing in 1996. By 2004, Major League Soccer had lost $350 million dollars. Many did not think it would last. Then MLS surprised people. In 2002, the U.S. soccer team reached the World Cup quarterfinals. To do this, it had to beat top teams such as Portugal and Mexico. After the Cup, MLS began winning fans. The league wanted to add more teams. Portland, Oregon, would be one of them. First, the team needed a place to play.
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